Kevin Durant is a 2x champion, and we all know that he won both titles in Golden State. Here’s why we’re reiterating it. After KD joined the Warriors, that move started the chain of super-teams in the NBA. The 2017 Warriors roster is known as one of the most dominant teams. However, did that make any of the ‘Fantastic Four’ ‘lesser’ players had they not been on the same lineup? Of course not.

KD was an MVP candidate, Steph was coming off his second MVP season, Klay was unstoppable from three and Green was still a backup scorer. Not only that, but their bench also had some of the most experienced veterans. Still, so many years later, an unusual analogy was made. Recently, Keyshawn Johnson talked about how hypothetically Paul Pierce could’ve produced the same output had he followed KD’s path. “If it put Paul Pierce on the Golden State Warriors with Klay Thompson, Draymond, and Steph Curry, you don’t think he can do the same sh*t. I mean same stuff. He can do the same thing!”

Now, of course, there are going to be multiple arguments but KD was quick enough to clap back, for this one. “If the jets would’ve took Jonathan Ogden, Marvin Harrison, ray lewis or Eddie George number 1 they would’ve been better off……I hate hypotheticals,” Kevin Durant replied.

The NFL reference was quite the response from the Slim Reaper, and he was referring to the 1996 draft. The Jets had made a conscious call to go for Johnson and bypassed the likes of many future Hall of Famers, the names of whom KD has presented you with!

On the other hand, it is highly debatable whether Paul Pierce and Steph Curry would’ve won two championships in a row in 2017. This does not conclude that Pierce is not a great player, but the Slim Reaper is just better. Statistically or in terms of talent, KD is one of the greatest scorers to have ever played the game. Not only that but given he is quite experienced playing alongside such talent.

Now, there isn’t any actual way to determine these hypothetical situations. However, we can roughly estimate how great the Warriors would’ve been with Paul Pierce. The truth is the Champion and a Finals MVP was part of a historic title run, forming the ‘Big Three’ in Boston, back in 08′. Not to mention that the game was more focused on deep shooting by 2017. Pierce, although a great one-on-one player, would’ve faced issues with Kerr’s rotations, which were based mostly on outside shots with a taste of Phil Jackson’s thinking.

Kevin Durant was unstoppable during the playoffs

In the three postseasons, Kevin Durant played with the Warriors, the Slim Reaper averaged 29.6 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 4.5 assists while shooting over 51% from the field. His best was, of course, during the 2018 playoffs, when the Dubs went past the Rockets in 7. Regardless, KD’s history in GSW’s postseason is one of the greatest to witness. However, his efforts did not stop there. Later on, the vet did not fail to impress after leading the Nets to the playoffs in 2021.

His infamous shot, which was just an inch shy of a possible dagger, is one of the biggest ‘What Ifs’ of his career. Still, Durant was just as effective with the Nets and even the Suns. Yes, they couldn’t avoid a sweep in the first round this past season. But then again, looking at Kevin Durant’s contribution, averaging more than 26 points while shooting 41.7% from long range, there’s no denying that he’s still one of the best postseason players.

At the end of the day, a replacement for such a talent would be rare to find. Nonetheless, it was an unusual yet interesting take from Keyshawn Johnson, but what are your thoughts? Do you think a hypothetical Pierce and Steph duo could win two rings? Let us know in the comments.

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